It all started when Karl Szmolinsky won a prize for breeding Germany’s largest rabbit, a friendly-looking 10.5 kilogram “German Gray Giant” called Robert, in February 2006.

Images of the chubby monster went around the world and reached the reclusive communist state of North Korea, a country of 23 million which according to the United Nations Food Programme suffers widespread food shortages and where many people “struggle to feed themselves on a diet critically deficient in protein, fats and micronutrients.”

Szmolinsky, 67, from the eastern town of Eberswalde near Berlin, recalls how the North Korean embassy approached his regional breeding federation and enquired whether it might be willing to sell some rabbits to set up a breeding farm in North Korea. He was the natural choice for the job.

Each of his rabbits produces around seven kilograms of meat, says Szmolinsky, who was so keen to help alleviate hunger in the impoverished country that he made the North Koreans a special price — €80 per rabbit instead of the usual €200 to €250.

“They’ll be used to help feed the population,” Szmolinsky told SPIEGEL ONLINE. “I’ve sent them 12 rabbits so far, they’re in a petting zoo for now. I’ll be travelling to North Korea in April to advise them on how to set up a breeding farm. A delegation was here and I’ve already given them a book of tips.”

Greedy Rabbits

Szmolinsky knows what he’s talking about. He has been breeding rabbits for 47 years. The 12 bunnies he sent can produce 60 babies a year — if the North Koreans find enough food to feed them properly. “I feed them everything — grain, carrots, a lot of vegetables. At the moment they’re getting kale,” said Szmolinsky.

ne rabbit provides a filling meal for eight people. There are a variety of recipes such as rabbit leg or rabbit roulade. No one buys rabbit fur anymore though, I just throw that in the bin,” says Szmolinsky with chilling dispassion.

He breeds between 60 and 80 rabbits per year and manages to stay emotionally detached enough to send the furry, innocent-looking, huge-eared creatures to slaughter. Asked if he has any pet bunnies he could never part with, he said: “You can’t hang on to them, if you did you wouldn’t be able to breed them.”

Szmolinsky’s North Korean connection has attracted media attention from around the world, and he seems to be getting tired of it. “I’m getting ambushed by camera crews,” he said, adding that he was booked up with interview appointments for days. “There’s a Japanese crew flying in from Paris later.”

Potential Chinese buyers have also expressed an interest. Szmolinsky doesn’t know how many more rabbits he will be sending to North Korea and said he definitely wouldn’t be increasing his own production to satisfy growing demand from Asia.

“I’m not increasing production and I’m not taking any more orders after this. They cost a lot to feed,” he said.

if i had a choice those rabbits deserve to live just look at there faces its as if there giving you the puppy dog face TURN VEGETARIANS!!! how would we like it if the went around eating humans??? think about it

17. nicole (the one who has a pregnant rebbit) and rebecca (the one who has the rex bunny) -
January 17, 2008

we love your big bunny, it is a cute giant thing!! We are animal lovers and this is one of the best bunnies we have ever seen. How did you get him to be that big??? we would love one of thoes bunnies and maybe you could tell us your secret one day !!

does anyone know how i could get one as a pet? that would be awesome walking around the block and that big bunny with you lol you could dress him with clothes and everything it would be so cute aww its sad how they send them 2 north korea cus kim jong il will just eat all those rabbits he is getting and serve them at some banquet none of it will get to the people also what breed are they?

maybe i can answer some of your questions the breed is a new breed called giants and most breeds depend on the fur color/size and ear type and size of the rabbit. i have 8 rabbits but mine don’t come close to that size. i can’t stand to think of eating my rabbits because it would be like eating my best friend or a family member. rabbits can live to be 8 or 11 years old if they are properly cared for and most rabbits that live indoors live longer because you can play with them and the don’t have to put fat on for the winter. to show my love for my rabbit im in work on making a youtube video about them for the world to see called my rabbits are my friends and your just sick if u wanna eat rabbits . i love my rabbist to death<33
so please dont eat rabbits !!!!!!

HI I am Taylor Weckel and I love Jake Wold. I also love those bunnies. They are so big and awesome! My best friend Erica told me about these giant bunnies!They are SOOOOOOOOOO cool! Why won’t you breed them anymore????????????????????????????????????????

When are people going to figure out that we are carnivores? Yes, they’re cute. They are the reason the roots in my front teeth are so long. So I rip that lovely, tasty bunny meat off the bone. Yeah, it’s primal but jeeze. I’d be very angry if all the vegetarians teamed up and got all production of meat stopped. I’d eat them.

Oh My Goodness! You all are planning on EATING that bunny?? I can’t believe what I am hearing! I have 6 bunnies of my own, soon more. This makes me sick to think that some one would eat this innocent rabbit! There are so many people who would pay so much money for a beautiful rabbit that size. Especially if it is tame. I wish that people would have the decency to care for their rabbits, other than slaughter them.

and all of you people are idiots
“aww i love bunnies, theyre cute, dont eat them”
theyre rabbits, they dont have human emotions, they dont care if they live or die the way humans do
people need to eat
circle of life

Who are all of these people writing comments? All of you sound like you forgot to take proper grammar classes in elementary. Half of you sound like you are still in elementary school. It is sad that we have people who cannot spell and who sound like they are speaking baby talk running around in the world. What is even sadder is Jessica’s comment that rabbits do not care whether they live or die. They obviously do otherwise we would see them jumping into the mouths of predators, especially the worse type of predator in the world, humans. There are too many people in the world, they deserve to starve because all people do is continue to breed. People are worse breeders than rabbits. These people in Korea should stop having children if they want to sustain an adequate amount of food for their country. Everyone who does not see this should open their eyes. Our resources aren’t going to last forever, giant rabbits or no giant rabbits. Instead of finding new things to eat, find a solution. The solution is simple. Quit bringing new babies into the world at a grotesque rate. Be a responsible human being.

I was about to type something, but I came up with an ethical issue – what if I’m eating rabbit with my pet bunny next to me? That just seems wrong, but hey – if one uses an animal like a rabbit for food then so be it. I would probably try it myself. But a part of me thinks they are sooo cute that I would keep them as a pet. So it’s up to you. As a Christian I feel both are reasonable.

But I do feel their fur is wasted. Like the Native Americans would think (or so I remember) don’t waste any part of the animal. But that can get difficult in this age.

I definitely feel bad for the rabbits, and don’t believe that they should be raised for slaughter. It’s just not right to send completely healthy animals into slaughter. Either quit popping out babies “like rabbits” or only eat the sickly, miserable, or old ones, like most predators do. Have some respect for animals. The world is overly populated anyway. The resources are running out. We need to slow down birth rates as it is. Here’s a scary thought: more people = more cities = more energy factories = more global warming = thinner ozone layer = cataracts, skin cancer, and DNA mutations. Yea, off topic a bit, but the selling of giant rabbits directly connects to overpopulation.

I have a rabbit. He is not oversized…LOOK AT THE MAN HOLDING THE RABBIT AT THE TOP! HES SHAKING!!!!!!! GOODNESS, PEOPLE! Why do humans think bigger is better? of course, iPods and computers have to be small, but why not animals? Why do we constantly believe that WE CONTROL THE WORLD? goodness we INFEST the world. This is the worst society I’ve ever seen. Those poor animals…it’s a shame.

1. STOP HAVING KIDS, PEOPLE!!!!! Be a good person and adopt a kid if you want one, there are so many kids in this world that don’t have a home and need to be loved.
2. STOP KILLING RABBITS!!!!! I love rabbits and any kind of animal, it just hurts me to see animals begging killed.

Even though this is two years after Mani posted a comment, I agree with him/her. There are so many orphans and they’re so sad, why can’t we adopt some instead of overpopulating the world? Humans are monsters. We think we absolutely control everything. I wish I was a bird.

OMG That bunny is huge I ish I could have it it’s like at big stuffed animal I already have 3 bunnys at my house and I hope u din’t kill them or slaughted them because I’d be reallllllllyyyyy mad and sad well bye!

Um Hello!?!?!?!? These pictures are so obviously fake. Look at the guy’s hand in the first big picture. His hand is bigger than his head. These pictures are not in proportion. They had to have been taken with some sort of special zoom lens that focuses on the the object in the foreground (the bunny) and makes zooms in to it to make it larger. The guy’s hand was also affected, because no one’s hand id that huge compared to their head. Also notice how the bunny is very sharp in focus, you can see all of his little hairs and whiskers very clearly, but the guy’s head and face are blurry. Come on people, just because you see a picture you can’t believe its real. Its called Photoshop.This story would not have been picked up by News services around the world and with a follow-up story about the “Dear Leader” subsequently eating the bunnies shipped to him, if it wasn’t true. You are misreading the normal lens distortion from a close-up with a wide-angle lens and the normal depth-of-field in the focus only being able to be clear on the object in focus as a post-picture editing trick. Why did the photographer use such visual tricks? To make the bunnies appear bigger! – Sensationalism sells. webmaster

Can i have one pwease? i promise to love it and hug it and cuddle it! lol
At anyrate they are huge and so cute and look so loveable i want one!
“A big bunny for me and my hunny, a big bunny that doesnt look funny, ohhh yes i want a really big bunny so it along with me and my hunny can have sooo much funny!”

It confounds me that so many people are concerned about these rabbits but show no compassion or concern for the people in North Korea who are starving, possibly to death, under a regime that could easily prevent this. Why do people care so much more about animals than humans?

I think those rabbits are fake because of their ears, feet, and the bellies and you don’t hold rabbits by the scruffs and their way too big and I have a Holland lop ear rabbit and It’s not that big and It’s name is Shadow and thats why I’m talking to you because they are too big and fat.

I notice that there are a lot of animal-rights fighters on this page. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a vegetarian. But everyone’s just trying to survive in this world. There are starving people out there, and while I don’t like the thought of animals being killed, and while I believe that all lives are equal, whether they be man or animal, you can’t honestly say you would like to see innocent people starve to death. The starving Koreans deserve to live just as much as the rabbits do, and, frankly, that’s why the rabbits are being bred, and they wouldn’t live for much longer anyways. It’s not the most delightful prospect, but it has to be done.

oh my goodness dont kill rabbitsssss ahhh i looooove themmmm there adorable….i take care of bunnies for my boyfriend…i would never think about killing them…ever ever eveeeer….love the poor bunnies..dont kill them…they deserve rights just like you and me….just look at them…aren’t they gorgeous!!!!

bunnies are beautiful…not meant to be eaten…much like any other animal around…be a damn vegitarian…quit eating meat!! let those damn animals live…they deserve life…!!!! duhhhh!!!

I hate to say this but most of you people a nuts. first rabbies do care if they are eaten but so dose every other living thing on earth, do you really think that the carrot wants you to rip it out of the ground cut it up and eat it, many plants have try to prevent them selves from being eaten yet we eat them any ways you never hear “no dont eat the cute little strawberry or aw we should not eat that mushroom” even thou our eatting of them dose not help the plant and in some cassses kills it so what is with this dont eat meat, if you repected life that much please never again wash you may kill a bactiera or perhaps you should not boil or fiter your water that tap worm needs a good home. I try to respected all life i dont kill with out reason ie to eat or to protected my life or others. And when death is need i try to deal it out quickly, when i buy meat i try to get meat that is keep humanly, though i can afford this right know and do not jugs those who can’t. What many vegitarian dont seem to understand is that many people are to poor to make thier choose and that those animals would not exsessed if not made for food. plus they dont seem to think of there carbon foot print and the death of all those wild animal with lose of habitat or poison to bring them the food they need to eat all year because they have given up meat.

People are dying from starvation in other countries. Until they find a solution for this problem, then they have to resort to eating dogs, cats, monkeys, and in this case rabbits. It’s a terrible thing to eat animals we think of as pets but its better than thousands of people dying because the animals where “too cute” to eat. I feel bad for the man who has to breed this rabbits, I would get way to attached to them to even think about eating them, let alone sending them to a country to get breed for eating.

we’re not carnivores. carnivores can’t survive without meat. they also can’t metabolize non-meat things into usable energy. we are omnivores, which means we CAN live without meat, and we have the unique trait of moral agency, which means we can MAKE THE CHOICE to not eat meat. it’s a matter of taste. on one hand, animals taste good; on the other, they are living, thinking creatures with the capacity for physical and emotional sensation and suffering.

the question of going veg is a personal one, and is a difficult program to adopt. vegetarians work hard to limit the suffering they inflict on other, less fortunate creatures–there’s nothing wrong with that. aggressive opposition to vegetarianism only betrays a narrow-mindedness and thoughtlessness on the part of the aggressor. vegetarians have lower rates of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer. sure, as an omnivore you can eat what you like. but there’s a moral consequence to eating without thinking.

hi my name is jennifer and i was wondering where can i find big bunnies like the ones on this page. i would love to have 1 or 2. if any one can help me find one please contact me through here i will check often.
thanks so much
jennifer

No mention here of when North Korea tried breeding dogs for food. It didn’t work very well as dog is a traditional Korean food (ka-Go-gi) and people ate all of the breeding dogs. This idea might have merit, my concern is how the North Koreans will get food to feed these giant rabbits. Hope they enjoy rice, or funky wheat by-products.

And, what happens if these giant rabbits get loose? Be a real trip to see them wonder around in the woods.

All very good on paper, but as most of the country is starving what are they going to feed them on ?
During the bleak years of the famine nothing was wasted and the black market was rife, if there was anything left to do a deal with.These creatures will cause more problems than they will be worth and only the elite will get a taste.

mix and heat at 350 degrees for 2 hours
2 cans of cream of mushroom soup
2 pounds chopped carrots
two large diced onions
one tablespoon of salt and pepper
four large potatoes cut up
six garlic cloves halved
one bay leaf
one tbsp of rosemary

After 2 hours remove recipe from the oven, throw the rabbit away and eat the rest.

To the people asking if you can own one of these rabbits, first off I do not think the guy who owns these rabbits reads the comments, second off if you read the whole article you will find out how much they are, what kind of bread they are and lots of other information, I am sure you could also do a Google search and find out where to get these over grown sewer rats. Besides who wants an anamal that poops brown soccer balls?

People who dont have anything to feed themselves, should just not reproduce, unless they plan to eat their children. It’s about responsibility… people are too reassured of their “right to overpopulate the world” and the obligation of others to feed them if they cant do it themselves (!!!!###!!%!!).

[…] Fat German Rabbits to Feed Poor: Monster Bunnies For North Korea – International – SPIEGEL ONLINE – News An east German pensioner who breeds rabbits the size of dogs has been asked by North Korea to help set up a big bunny farm to alleviate food shortages in the communist country. Now journalists and rabbit gourmets from around the world are thumping at his door. It all started when Karl Szmolinsky won a prize for breeding Germany's largest rabbi … Read More […]